This is the News in Brief from the United Nations. 

Any attack on a nuclear plant is 'suicidal', warns UN chief 

UN Secretary-General António Guterres has condemned a recent attack on a nuclear power station in southern Ukraine.  

"Any attack [on] nuclear plants is a suicidal thing and I hope that those attacks will end," Mr. Guterres told the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo on Monday. 

Moscow and Kyiv have denied responsibility for the latest strike at the Zaporizhzhia plant over the weekend.  

The complex – Europe's largest nuclear power site – has been under Russian control since the early days of the war, but Ukrainian technicians are still running it.  

The shelling of the plant prompted the UN International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to warn that the way in which Zaporizhzhia was being run and the fighting going on around it posed a “very real risk of a nuclear disaster”. 

When asked why a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine had not yet been realized, the UN chief said they had been working very closely with Türkiye, which had “launched a new initiative in relation to a possible start of peace negotiations”.   

But he explained that Ukraine cannot accept that “its territory is taken by another country”, and that Russia “does not seem ready to accept” that areas it had taken “will not be annexed by the Russian Federation or give way to new independent States”.  

Suitable workers conditions need during extreme heat in Iraq, ILO warns 

A warning now about extreme heat in Iraq, where temperatures have soared to 50 degrees Celsius in recent weeks. 

In a call for action to protect workers, the UN labour agency, ILO, has called for measures to be put in place to reduce the risks for those working under extreme heat.  

One in four workers in Iraq is employed either in construction or agriculture, sectors already considered among the most hazardous sectors in the world. The ILO is becoming increasingly concerned about their working conditions.  

The ILO stated that while workers in some parts of Iraq have been given time off because of the heat, measures must be taken to protect those in informal, temporary, seasonal or day labour who cannot afford to miss a day of work. 

This could include providing appropriate clothing, access to drinking water and shaded areas; and being encouraged to work during cooler hours with appropriate break times. 

Amplify indigenous women’s voices – Guterres  

Meanwhile, the UN chief called on Monday for the rights and traditional knowledge of indigenous peoples to be implemented and promoted by Member States.  

In his message, the Secretary-General recalled his official visit last month to Suriname. The smallest and least populated South American country is a biodiversity conservation leader with a carbon-negative footprint.  

There he saw first-hand its rich biodiversity and how indigenous peoples protect their rainforest. His message coincides with the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, which this year is highlighting the role of indigenous women in preserving and passing on traditional knowledge. 

“Indigenous women are knowledge keepers of traditional food systems and medicines. They are champions of Indigenous languages and cultures. They defend the environment and Indigenous peoples’ human rights. To build an equitable and sustainable future that leaves no one behind, we must amplify the voices of Indigenous women”. 

Katy Dartford, UN News.